it's not as if he doesn't have an awfully strong hand to play. if it's a deal john boehner can accept, frankly, i think it will be passed in a bipartisan manner with a strong majority. if earn he's not neutral or favorable, his chances will be a lot slimmer. >> we will find out in the morning whether any progress came out of the senate leader mitch mcconnell's meeting with vice president joe biden. >> we've been asking you, our viewers, to send in your thoughts, your messages to elected representatives. so let's close tonight with some advice from one of you to washington. >> my message to all of washington for the new year is to set partisanship aside working on behalf of 100% of the voters, fix this mess you've gotten us into, bring a balanced budget to the table to grow this economy for the long term not the short term. >> there you go. for the long term, not the short term. >> there you go. i'm don lemon. happy new year to you.

jooirksz . hello, i'm don lemon and this is cnn's top 10 of 2012. we look at the stories that captured our attention, what we see as the biggest stories of the year around the world, in crime, money, weather and even the biggestscandals and later this hour, those stories chosen by you. anchor of state of the union, candy crowley, with the top ten political stories of 2012. like finding your favorite grain of sand on the beach. impossible number of possibilities. catch phrases become boomerangs. >> if you got a business you didn't build that. >> i like being aable to find

service members. >> i'm an american woman who uses contraception. let's start there. >> it's like an etch-a-sketch. you shake it up and we start all over again. >> i'm not going to shut up. it's my turn. >> i think it's called romneysia. >> if i were to coin a term it would be obamaloney. >> there were game changers, too, moments that shook up the race or made history and made our top ten list. wisconsin's republican governor scott walker in a showdown over labor and collective bargaining power. turns out the end result was no bellwether for the presidential race, be walker won, the first governor in history to survive a recall election. another nod to a governor. >> i can't thank the president enough for his personal concern and compassion for our state and

the people of our state. >> new jersey governor chris christ christie's full-on embrace of president obama for helping sandy-ravaged new jersey came days before the election and had no noticeable effect on the presidential race but some republicans think christie didn't have to be that -- >> if it's a legitimate rape, the female body has ways to shut that whole thing down. >> a combo team from the say what categories, richard murdouch of indiana and todd aiken. >> even when life begins in that horrible situation of rape, it is something that god swended to happen. >> dreams to take control of the senate in 2012 had dwindled throughout the year but aiken and murdoch pretty much shut that door in a couple of

sentences. plan to prevent employers from hiring undocumented workers. >> people who have come here illegally won't be able to find work and over time those people would tend to leave the country or self deport. >> self deportation by undocumented workers was not by itself responsible for romney's dismal showing among hispanics, but certainly greased the skids. for which romney would have liked to have had aa mulligan, there was this. >> 47% of the people who will vote for the president no matter what. there are 47% who are with him, who are dependent upon him, who believe that they are a victim. >> reporter: romney called his remarks completely wrong. they also caused the deepest self inflicted wound of the election. on the flip side -- >> he will be the next vice president of the united states. >> romney's vp day may well have been the best moment of his campaign, the selection of congressman paul ryan excited conservatives in a way romney himself had not.

how many moments are there in an hour and a half? the president lost all of them in the first debate. pictures tell the story of a man who phoned it in, panicking his supporters and providing an opening for romney. and, finally, the top three moments of the election best described aas history-making politics. a supreme court decision, upholding the constitutionality of obamacare. if that doesn't strike you as political, consider what would have happened on the campaign trail if the high court had struck down the president's signature first-term achievement. >> at a single point i just concluded that for me, personally, it is important for me to go ahead and aaffirm that i think same-sex couples should be able to get married. >> the first president to endorse same-sex marriage was a daily double moment, good politics aimed at the activist

wing of his party base and most certainly history. number one political moment of the year is easy during elections. >> cnn projects that barack obama will be re-elected president of the united states. >> we are greater than the sum of our individual ambitions and we remain more than a collection of red states and blue states. we a we are and forever will be the united states of america. >> cue the confetti and say good by to 2012 in all its moments, historical and hysterical. candy crowley, cnn, washington. >> civil unrest, a new dictator and a teen who took on the taliban are among our top ten international stories of 2012. here is cnn's zain verjee. >> can you believe it is already the end of the year? actually the mayan calendar said

it would be the end of the world but oh, my goodness we're still here. so many important stories from 2012, conflict, hopelessness, inspiration sw hope. we also made sure we had a little bit of fun. take a look. >> welcome to london. >> queen of england celebrated her diamond jubilee year. it rained on her floatilla parade but at any time take the sparkle out of the magic moments. millions more tuned in for this famous wave. number nine, september 11th in benghazi, libya, am was dor chris stevens and three others killed in the attack on the embassy there. american officials first insisted it was spontaneous, sparked by a protest over an anti-muslim film.

the administration's response to the attack became a political hot button. number eight, no freedom here in the hermit kingdom. kim jong un took over for his father. the west hoped there would be change but there wasn't. flexing its military muscle, by place i placing aa satellite in orbit. number seven, brutality by police and private security was out in the open in south africa, where the killing of minors was captured on camera and broadcast everywhere. minors were protesting, demanding higher wages. the price they hado pay shocked the world. number six, ten more years, communist party of china selected new leaders, the secretive process produced a new president, l.a. lakers fan married to a rock star. but china's foreign policies are

likely to stay the same. number five, moment morsi, islamist group, became president of egypt. as his predecessor, dictator ousted by his people, went on trial from his hospital bed. morsi impressed the west by helping to broker the cease fire that ended an outbreak of warfare between hamas and israel. he then disappointed many by aawarding himself sweeping power s at home, triggering new outbursts in tahrir square. number four, israel and hamas brought fuel on the fiery west in the region. one side firing rockets. for the first time, israel felt

vulnerable in jerusalem and tell aaveev. before the big guns of diplomacy helped to broker a cease fire. number three in europe, greece was the problem child that spent too much, saved nothing and threatened to take down the euro. new leadership, pay cuts, higher taxes as their weary government begs for more cash. committing to save the euro. it lives on, but for how long? >> the deadliest month to date as the assad regime intensified its air power. >> how much longer can this man hold on to power? bashar al assad was under even

more intense pressure to step down but his regime stepped up the fire power against the opposition, civilians caught in the crossfire, more than 40,000 people have died so far. >> reporter: this is yet another bread line. >> the opposition fights on, making more dramatic gains than ever and gaining pledges of support from the international community. number one, she fought back from the brink of death after being attacked on a school bus. the taliban shot malala yousafzai. she survived, wake up in a british hospital and, according to her father, immediately asked for her school books. the world was gripped, moved and inspired by the story of one determined young girl facing down an entire network of armed militants and winning. zain verjee, cnn, london.

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the year definitely had its share of horrendous crime stories, some capturing international attention and outrage. others filled with disturbing details, almost too hard to believe. here's randi kaye with our top ten crime and punishment stories of 2012. >> a manhunt is under way for mcafee software founder, john mcafee. >> the computer wiz and millionaire is wanted for the murder of an american ex-patriot in belize. >> they claim they just want to

talk to mcafee as part of their investigation, but no one seems to know where he is. >> yes, this one was strange and only got stranger after weeks went by and no one could find him. well, not no one. >> breaking news right now, fugitive software tycoon john mcafee, wanted for questioning in the murder of his neighbor in b belise is wanted and we found him. number nine, the day darkness fell under a crystal clear sky in wisconsin. >> seven people are dead at this point, three of them we're told outside of that temple. >> the gunman on a rampage at a sikh temple. u.s. army veteran wade michael page. after shooting one police officer multiple times --

page was shot and killed by another officer. number eight, the massacre in khandahar province. >> the united states takes this as seriously as if it was our own citizens and our own children who were murdered. >> the accused gunman, robert bailes. bailes left his afghanistan outpost on a night back in march and single handedly attacked two villages. opening fire and killing 16 afghan civilians in their homes and wounding six others. number seven, striking a deal in the shooting that struck a blow to the nation. >> the man who shot congresswoman gabrielle giffords and killed six people in a ra rampage in tucson last year pleaded guilty to 19 charges. >> jared loughner was sentenced to seven consecutive life terms and 140 years. his guilty plea means he will avoid the death penalty. chicago's murder rate surged to levels not seen in almost a decade. >> it's just not the gang bangers. right now, innocent kids and women are being shot on a daily

basis. >> averaging more than a murder a day, most of the crime happened in a few specific areas. >> the entire city suffers when violence happens. and this idea of not in my backyard is not okay. >> we start this morning with breaking news from italy. a massive cruise ship the costa concordia turned on its side after running aground in january. 32 passengers and crew were killed. the captain says it was an accident, not a crime. but he now faces charges. >> the ship's captain is being investigated for manslaughter and abandoning ship. >> he claims he tripped and fell into a life boat. the sentencing of jerry sandusky. >> carol, jerry sandusky will die in jail. >> a judge sentenced the 68-year-old former penn state assistant football coach to at least 30 years in jail after he was convicted of 45 counts of child sex abuse. despite the mountain of evidence against him, sandusky continues to proclaim his innocence. he's in the process of appealing his sentence.

number three, the shooting of unarmed 17-year-old trayvon martin. >> my son left sanford, florida in a body bag while george zimmerman went home to go to sleep in his own bed. >> accused gunman george zimmerman claims self-defense in a case that sparked international outrage and ignited racial tensions. the trial is set for june. number two -- >> we need rescue inside the auditorium. multiple victims. >> my god, seven down in theater nine! seven down! >> july 20th, just past midnight, terror inside theater nine. >> aurora, colorado, nine miles east of denver, where there has been a mass shooting at a movie theater. >> james holmes donned protective gear, threw tear gas and began firing. in the end 12 people killed. 58 others wounded.

holmes faces 152 charges. many victims continue to recover while others will never recover the loss they suffered that night. and number one. >> unimaginable horror grips the nation in one of the deadliest school shootings in u.s. history. >> tragedy at sandy hook elementary. >> this is unspeakable what happened in this town. >> innocent children shot dead in their classrooms. the victims 16 six-year-olds, four seven-year-olds along with six adults. >> emilie's laughter was infectious. all those who met her would agree the world was a better place because she was in it. >> outpouring of kindness and compassion as a nation faced hard questions about mental health and guns as the president issued an emotional call for action. >> for those of us who remain,

let us find the strength to carry on and make our country worthy of their memory. >> randi kaye, cnn, atlanta. next, the stories that affect your bottom line, from facebook's ipo to the new apple boss, to the fiscal cliff. a look at the biggest money stories of the year. and later this hour, the ten most intriguing people of 2012 as chosen by you. that's why there's glucerna hunger smart shakes. they have carb steady, with carbs that digest slowly to help minimize blood sugar spikes. [ male announcer ] glucerna hunger smart. a smart way to help manage hunger and diabetes. till you finish your vegetables. [ clock ticking ] [ male announcer ] there's a better way... v8 v-fusion. vegetable nutrition they need, fruit taste they love. could've had a v8. or...try kids boxes! to come home for the holidays. that's double miles you can actually use... sadly, their brother's white christmas

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breaking news tonight, one of the greatest voices of her generation, whitney houston, has died. february 11th, 2012, a tragic end for an iconic singer. whitney houston, who battled with drugs and alcohol for decades, was found dead in a los angeles hotel bathroom. her death was ruled an accidental drowning with the effects of heart disease and

cocaine use listed as contributing factors. she was just 48. that was one of the biggest entertainment moments of 2012. some might say 2012 was the year of washington versus the rest of us. unemployment, home prices and the stock market all up. even as our nation's leaders failed to get their act together. here are the top ten stories that caught the attention of cnn business correspondent christine romans and ali velshi. >> number ten, apple, the first year without steve jobs and the company is trying to prove under a new ceo that it can still invent things we didn't even know we would wee needed that we would buy faster than anything's been sold in personal technology before. number nine, the u.s. stock market. despite all those worries about the fiscal cliff and maybe slower growth in the u.s. economy, the stock market has had a great year. too bad you missed out. smart money's been on the market. the rest of us have been worried about the fiscal cliff.

>> number eight, facebook's ipo. hundreds of millions of people like facebook, but investors did not on its first day as a public company. trading glitches at the nasdaq and questions about the company's ability to make money on mobile users pummeled the stock, which has yet to climb its way back to its ipo price. >> number seven, mother meyer. the new ceo of yahoo! who announced she was just going to take a two-week maternity leave as she tried to turn this company around. 37 years old, it looks like a mother's touch is what yahoo! needed. >> mother nature. an intense drought in the midwest that scorched the corn and soy crop, sending prices sky high. >> who can forget super storm sandy? neighborhoods along the northeast swept away, millions

without power and damages as high as 50 billion dollars raising lots of questions about u.s. infrastructure and whether we should be spending money to fix it. >> number five, china. is china slowing or leading the world. we know china will be the biggest economy in the world by 2020. for sure by 2030. >> china. >> china. >> china. >> china also getting more than a few mentions during the presidential campaign. it's pretty clear china is a competitor and a partner. >> number four, europe, the european union was fractured by too much debt and the austerity plans to fix it. that saga is far from over. number three, the housing market. finally, finally bottomed out. the combination of low home prices and continued record low mortgage rates set off a building and buying spree. well-healed investors began buying entire neighborhoods, but first time buyers were also able to get a home of their own for the first time in years. as long as they had a hefty downpayment.

number two. >> cnn projects that barack obama will be re-elected president of the united states. >> the election. more than just about obama and romney. it was about socialism and capitalism. about spending and cutting. about what kind of role government should have in your life. number one is the fiscal cliff. lawmakers saw it coming, but didn't bother to pay any attention to it until after the election. had they put politics aside and dealt with it earlier, who knows how strong the u.s. economy would be right now. next, scandal. can you guess who made our list because of bad behavior? new prilosec otc wildberry

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i'm don lemon with a look at your headlines. hillary clinton will spend new year's eve in a new york city hospital with a blood clot. doctors admitted the secretary of state sunday after a medical exam. the clot is believed to be related to the concussion she suffered earlier this month. when she fainted from the effects of a stomach virus. doctors want to keep her and a

close eye on her for 48 hours. the other big story tonight is the action or inaction on capitol hill. if lawmakers do not reach a fiscal cliff agreement, you could see your taxes skyrocket and deep spending cuts kick in on entitlements and tax increases. the major sticking points or entitlements and tax increases. house republicans met into the evening and we'll find out in the morning whether joe biden and mitch mcconnell made any progress in their talks. both houses will be back in session tomorrow. those are your headlines this hour, i'm don lemon, keeping you informed. cnn, the most trusted name in news. three, two, one. and liftoff -- >> may 2012, space-x launched a rocket into space, becoming the first commercial company to dock

a spacecraft at the international space station. it marked a new beginning, private companies instead of nasa sending cargo to the station. it was one of the space industry's top accomplishments. one of our top scientific breakthroughs of 2012. it was a banner year for bad behavior and not all of it easy to stomach. from sports to politics and beyond. here's joe johns with the ten most scandalous stories of 2012. >> number 10, royalty gone wild. this year the british royal jewels got a public viewing. in las vegas, prince harry got caught in his birthday suit playing strip billiards, which didn't go over well back home. but when it was kate who was photographed in various stages of undress number nine, going out of

bounds, the nfl has made it a major mission to crackdown on concussions, so it was unpleasant for the league to learn in martha the new orleans saints had a bounty system from 2009 to 2011 paying team members for big hits that knocked opposing players out of the game. commissioner roger goodell responded with harsh suspensions for the general manager and coaches. initially the league also suspended a handful of players, but later overturned that decision. number eight, the wheels fly off the bike. cycling superstar lance armstrong had endured the swirl of steroid rumors for years, that all changed in august. the seven-time tour de france winner was stripped of his titles, lost his sponsorships and left the board of his famous cancer charity live strong, after the u.s. anti-doping agency found he engaged in a long term pattern of blood doping during his career. armstrong still denies using performance-enhancing drugs. number seven, wrong side of the street. few things are more universal for american children than sesame street and elmo. which makes the elmo sex scandal all the more shocking. kevin clash resigned as the

voice of elmo after allegations he had sexual contact with underaged males. the show says no one there knew anything about it. number six, congress behaving badly. the whiff of scandal doesn't mean you can't win a race for congress. jesse jackson jr. of illinois was re-elected even though he was absent for months due to mental health issues and under federal investigation for misusing congressional resources. weeks after the election he resigned. prolife republican congressman of tennessee had urged his pregnant mistress to get an abortion a decade ago. he denied the woman was pregnant or had an abortion, and he was re-elected by 12 points. number five, lybor pants on fire. even if you've never heard of lybor, it probably has a big impact on your finances. the interest rates on mortgages, student loans and credit cards are determined, in part, by the rate at which banks borrow from each other, called lybor.

barclays paid nearly half a million dollars for manipulating these important interest rates. and the investigations at other banks are still ongoing. the sheer scale of it is huge. it makes american financial crook bernie madoff, who made off with billions, look like a skidrow pickpocket. number four, big trouble in communist china. everybody thought one of the most powerful politicians in china was getting rid of crime and corruption until this summer when a court convicted his wife of murdering a british businessman and the government accused him of trying to hinder the investigation, as well as taking bribes and abusing his power. now he's been kicked out of the communist party. leaders voted to expel him in november. number three, a service becomes not so secret. the role of protecting the president when he travels abroad has its moments of glamour and excitement. that atmosphere included hookers for some secret service agents and military personnel visiting cartahena in advance of the president's arrival last april.

it was an embarrassing incident for the white house, but it wouldn't have bothered columbian authorities since prostitution is legal there. local police only got involved because of a hotel altercation between a woman and a secret service agent over the payment. number two, burying the lead. it's been called the building that never sleeps, but the bbc's london headquarters said it was completely unaware of the serious allegations involving long-time presenter, the late jimmy sabol, their show news night investigated allegations of child sexual abuse, but failed to air a report about what it discovered about an alleged abuser within their midst. six people have been arrested so far and the bbc's director general has resigned. number one david petraeus' blown cover. the illustrious career of david petraeus was brought to an abrupt end by e-mail. here's what happened. last spring petraeus' biographer

paula broadwell, wrote anonymous e-mails to tampa socialite jill kelly, warning her to stay away from high-ranking military officers. kelly complained to a friend in the fbi, which led to an investigation with unexpected consequences. the fbi also discovered e-mail exchanges between broadwell and petraeus, showing that in addition to being the general's biographer, she was also his mistress. the general resigned from the cia just days after the election. who knows what's in store for 2013. joe johns, cnn washington. >> local comedian dean obe obeidallah joins us. top of the list this year, scandal in washington. are you surprised petraeus topped the list? >> no, i'm not. the guy is the head of the cia, the top spy in america, and he

can't keep an affair secret. i think there's some human quality in there, and some humor at the same time. it's remarkable to me. it's men in power, thinking they can get away with it, bill clinton, john edwards, newt gingrich. one after the other. men in power think they live by different rules, that's why he deserves to be top of the chart. >> let's turn to the royal family. even the royal family couldn't escape the list. >> well, absolutely not. and in this case, though, prince harry, the kid's had trouble after trouble. if you invite a bunch of people to your room, get drunk and play strip poker, allow them to take pictures, you're going to be in the press. you're going to be in the tabloid. he's a horrible prince harry in that regard. the duchess unfortunately for her, had some expectations of privacy, she was alone on a french villa. they used long lenses to take pictures of her. that's why he deserves to be in the media, she doesn't. >> is it a double standard, because he's a guy. everyone said, you know what, they kind of brushed it off a little bit. if a woman, a female member of the royal family had taken pictures like prince harry, it would be quite a different story.

>> i think it would be, but the scenarios are completely different. if she had invited a bunch of people she just met in the casino to get drunk and take pictures, you're opening yourself up. in this world, and the paparazzi internationally and domestically, we have to limit them by profiting off pictures of celebrities by invading their privacy. that's what it's about. it's a different scenario, we have to have some standards, i agree with this one. though. >> dean obeidallah, thank you. >> thanks. in 2011, the united states experienced 14 weather disasters, costing $1 billion or more. in 2012, the hits kept on coming. >> number 10, april 15th. >> millions of people throughout the midwest are battened down. >> in a second, the whole house was gone. we were looking up at blue sky. >> 75 tornados ripped through the midwest, causing nearly $300 million in damage. number nine, tropical storm debbie. this is what happens when you get hammered by two feet of rain. >> this storm never developed

into a hurricane, but it did leave up to 28 inches of rain in northern florida. number eight, summer heat wave. sweltering heat baked the nation this summer. march and july set u.s. records as the hottest of all time. number seven, blufrting blustering wildfires. >> oh, my god. there's smoke in the air. >> the heat wave helped fuel a string of wildfires that charred the rest. colorado experienced two of the state's largest and most destructive wildfires ever. number six, the deratio in june. >> it began in iowa, moved through illinois, indiana, ohio and into washington, d.c.. it's just a fast-moving, long-lasting, violent thunderstorm complex. >> after charging 800 miles, 22 were dead and five million were without power. number five, the dallas 22. there's an old myth that tornados don't hit big cities. april 3rd proved otherwise when twisters hit dallas. >> it was scary. it was so scary.

it reminded you of the wizard of oz when the tornado hit and everything kept going around and around. >> in all, 22 tornados caused a billion dollars worth of damage within 24 hours. >> number four, deadliest tornados. >> tornados took up three slots in our top ten countdown, but this event was the deadliest. march 2nd and 3rd, 70 confirmed tornados killed 40 people in the midwest. number three, hurricane isaac. hurricane isaac descended on louisiana tuesday night nearly seven years to the day that hurricane katrina struck. isaac wasn't such a monster, but it was still a killer. the country held its collective breath as the levees were tested yet again. in the end, the new levees saved new orleans, but plaquemines parish was devastated by flooding. number two, the drought that devastated the dust bowl.

>> all the big rivers dry this year. >> by september, 66% of the u.s. was in some degree of drought. the dry weather is expected to continue into 2013 and this could become the costliest natural disaster in u.s. history. and number one. super storm sandy. >> this historic superstorm made landfall over the most populated areas of the united states. wind damage, power outages, storm surges, inland flooding, even snowstorms are threatening the lives and homes of people from virginia to massachusetts. >> i've never seen devastation like this in my life. >> the surf here getting much more violent. >> curfew is under way right now. you are not to be on the streets. >> they're keeping an eye on the possibility of flooding. >> superstorm sandy has crippled the nation's biggest transit system. >> talking about flooding, possible power outages that could last for days. >> people just need to be

self aware. >> the storm killed at least 113 people in the u.s. and caused tens of billions of dollars in damage. total repairs will take decades. chad myers, cnn. next, the most intriguing people of 2012 as voted on by you. but first, remembering some of those we lost this past year. ♪ but bounty basic can handle them. in this lab demo, bounty basic is stronger than the leading bargain brand. everyday life? bring it. bounty basic. now costs even less. progresso. in what world do potatoes, bacon and cheese add up to 100 calories? your world. ♪ [ whispers ] real bacon... creamy cheese... 100 calories... [ chef ] ma'am [ male announcer ] progresso. you gotta taste this soup.

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♪ you know you know it, that south korean rapper and his viral hit gangnam style. with more than 1 billion views

"gangnam style" has become the most watched youtube video of all time. while he may have danced his way into the record books, did he make the list of most intriguing people of 2012, as chosen by you? here's brooke baldwin. >> number ten, supreme court chief justice john roberts. >> the united states supreme court in a major decision a 5-4 decision up holds the president's health care reform law. >> few could have imagined the deciding vote was cast by the chief justice himself. conservatives stunned. liberals perplexed, but thrilled. forging ahead, the roberts court takes on same sex marriage. number nine, yahoo! ceo marissa meyer, at 37, head of a major tech company, a ceo in a male-dominated field, pregnant. it's the baby part that became problematic, shall we say, when

meyer decided to take just a couple of weeks for martin leave. the mommy blogosphere went nuts. what message was she sending by not staying home with her baby. >> number eight, south korean rapper, psy. ♪ >> say what you want, his lasso inspired dance style first discovered on youtube, had everyone going gangnam. and we mean everyone. >> the last one and then the -- >> he was riding high in 2012, star performer in the most watched youtube video of all time. ♪ >> number seven, republican presidential candidate mitt romney. >> this election is over, but our principles endure.

>> romney ran on his impressive business credentials, but it was his multiple gaffes during the campaign that analysts say helped seal his fate. remember the 47% comments? >> 47% who are with him, who are dependent upon him. >> oh, and this one. >> whole binders full of women. >> number six, ex-cia director general david petraeus. we have some breaking news now, coming in regarding the chief of the cia. general david petraeus -- >> general petraeus, can you talk about this, please? >> the news was unexpected. the reason, shocking. petraeus, a retired four-star general, had quit his cia post and admitted he cheated on his wife. petraeus' mistress was also his biographer, paula broadwell, an embarrassing exit from the public stage by one of the most respected public servants of his time.

>> an impressive list, huh? that's only half of them. the most intriguing people of 2012 revealed after a quick break. diabetes. that's why there's glucerna hunger smart shakes. they have carb steady, with carbs that digest slowly to help minimize blood sugar spikes. and they have six grams of sugars. with fifteen grams of protein to help manage hunger... look who's getting smart about her weight. [ male announcer ] glucerna hunger smart. a smart way to help manage hunger and diabetes.

it was a move that outraged nfl fans in 2012, the league battling with referees over money, tried to use replacements from college and even high school. after a blown deciding call on national tv, the two sides decided it was best to settle, agreed on a contract within days, making the replacement refs one of our top sports

moments of the year they did not make our most . intriguing list, who did? brook baldw brooke boulduan continues the countdown of those you voted as the most intriguing people of 2012. >> number five, super jumper, felix baumgartner. let's face it, he did what no human has ever done, diving 24 miles from the edge of space making the sound barrier along the way. >> i'm still the same guy, but as soon as you start traveling, people recognize my face. >> i was scared. >> you were scared?

>> i was a little bit scared. >> number four, new jersey governor chris christie. >> the shore and the board walk at seaside heights of my childhood no longer exists. >> the rough and tumble governor took charge when a superstorm named sandy ravaged his state days before the presidential election. a romney backer suddenly christie was standing arm in arm with the president praising mr. obama's leadership as they toured sandy's wrath. >> when you know you have responsibility for those folks. you don't care about the politics of things. i could care less today. >> number three olympian gabby douglas. >> gabby douglas. one of the fab five in the london games, she captured our hearts, becoming the first african-american gymnast to win gold in both the individual all around and team competitions at the same olympics. >> i wanted to inspire a nation. and inspire a generation, i love that. >> she did just that. >> number two, school-aged activist malala yousafzai. she rose to fame blogging about

the brutality of her life in pakistan under taliban rule. not yet a teenager, she dared to suggest girls not only deserve but have a right to an education. >> i will get my education, if it is in home, school or any place. >> the taliban retaliated, hunting her down, shooting her in the neck and back. the attack outraged even hardened pakistanis and all around the world, malala quickly became an international symbol of good against evil. today she is recovering in england. number one, president barack obama. >> tonight you voted for action, not politics as usual.

>> after a long, and we mean long, and bitter campaign president obama won re-election in 2012. the president also won the supreme court's stamp of approval for his health care reform program. and made history with this statement. >> i think same-sex couples should be able to get married. ♪ >> as 2012 comes to a close, the president joined in grief with a community shocked by senseless violence. >> these tragedies must end. and to end them we must change. >> brooke baldwin, cnn atlanta. that's 2012 in just 60 minutes. what does 2013 hold? we'll find out together. i'm don lemon, thanks for watching. i price rewind. because your daughter really wants that pink castle thing. and you really don't want to pay more than you have to. only citi price rewind automatically searches for the lowest price. and if it finds one, you get refunded the difference. just use your citi card and register your purchase online. have a super sparkly day! ok. [ male announcer ] now all you need is a magic carriage.

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health care for secretary of state hillary clinton. hospitalized for a blood clot. how serious is her condition. 18 hours and counting. can lawmakers reach a last-minute agreement. >> if we go over the fiscal cliff, what does it mean for you? higher taxes and government spending cuts are about to take a major toll on your paycheck. the fiscal cliff almost here, but the effects are very real and starting already. good morning. welcome to "early start." i'm ali velshi. >> i'm christine romans. >> and i'm dr. sanjay gupta. >> good morning. hilary clinton has been admitted to the hospital for a blood clot, it is believed to be related to a concussion she suffered earlier this month.

she will be hospitalized for 48 hours for hospitalization. she had just been cleared to return to work. what's going on here? jill daugherty has been following developments for us. live in the washington bureau. we're hearing 48 hours and seem to be saying it's not that serious. what are you hearing from the doctors? >> well, at this point, it's not really that clear. in fact, there was a statement coming out of the state department from phillip ryans, indicating the lack of clarity about this. he said her doctors will continue to assess her condition, including other issues associated with her concussion. they will determine if any further action is required." now, those other issues associated with her concussion, that's not clear, and i think, sanjay, you as a doctor know when they say 48 hours, that, you know, could be 48 hours or more, but they will be watching to see whether those anti coing aplants have some effect. it does, of course, change her schedule. she was supposed to be back this week, and one of the big things

on the schedule, very soon, supposed to be testimony about benghazi. the attack on benghazi that killed the american diplomat and others. that would seem not to happen soon and her travel schedule. supposed to travel at the very earliest, middle of the month. that would conceivably be on hold as well. >> you know, it's interesting, i worked for her back in 1998. she had a blood clot at this time as well. this is not the first time this has happened to her. hearing anything about how she's doing overall? >> not really. they are just saying she's in the hospital being observed, and we don't know exactly where the blood clot was. it, of course, was the result of the concussion, but not exactly saying precisely where. so i guess we'll have to see if we get updates as this 48-hour period goes through.

>> thank you so much for joining us. >> i want to ask a few more questions about this when you say a person developed a blood clot relatied to the concussion. the treatment is anti coing aplants. we don't know where the clot is. what is our treatment telling us about the condition? >> it's important. the way the statement was worded. said it was related to her concussion. i think it's very unlikely this is a blood clot on top of the brain or around the brain specifically. you don't treat blood clots on the brain that way. that would worsen the bleeding. >> coincidence? the concussion, blood clot? they just found it. >> a couple of things. one, you have a concussion like this, you put at rest. this is somebody who is traveling a lot on planes already, at rest as well. both can set up for a blood clot, for example, your legs. called a deep vain thrombosis. there are also some veins in the brain that can develop some blood clots, but those are on

top of the brain. >> you get them from traveling. increasingly, more awareness for how you should deal with that. how is that treated? >> it's interesting. people talk about this when something like this happens. getting up, walking around, staying hydrated. sometimes people wear compression stockings, but it's a real issue. people can develop this really at any age, and that's the concern. we don't know why she developed it, but we also know she had it in the past, that puts you slightly more risk. >> all right. hang on to your wallets, by the way. 18 hours to go before america goes over the fiscal cliff. final day for democrats and republicans to get a deal done. if they don't, your taxes go up at the stroke of midnight. the two sides brought in their so-called closers on sunday. vice president joe biden and senate minority leader mitch mcconnell. working behind the scenes as they have successfully done in the past. the senate went home last night and they are going to get in

this morning at the bright hour of 11:00 a.m. eastern. i don't understand how that works. we are not seeing any evidence of progress in either chamber, but as i said, mcconnell and biden are talking. that's important. these two guys have a long history together, and have an ability to cut a deal. one major stumbling block has been overcome. republicans have dropped their demand to reduce social security, cost of living increases. you will know that as the chain cpi. >> and the public has taken their demand for social security benefits off the table. the truth is they never should have been on the table to begin with. significant distance between the two sides, but negotiations continue. >> the consequences of this are too hot for the american people to be engaged, in a political messaging campaign. i'm interested in getting a result here. >> we followed that by saying he is so interested in getting a result, he worked on saturday. kind of neat.

worked all day saturday to get a deal. we have known about this, by the way, for 517 days, so the fact that we're all in this last-minute rush to get everything done is kind of fascinating to us. however, we're all doing it, on top of it, so is white house correspondent brianna keilar. what is your crystal ball, combined with contacts and experience telling you about what will happen with the fiscal cliff today? >> all signs point to iffy, i will tell that you, ali. some senators are saying there may be a deal by tonight. some are saying there will be a vote by midnight tonight, some say we're going over the cliff. it's hard to tell. the expectation, even if we go over the fiscal cliff. right now, congress is still looking at trying to resolve this here in the next few days. so it's not as if we go over the cliff and stay there. there would be time to resolve

the issue. that being said, we saw a whirlwind of negotiating on capitol hill. and right now, after things sort of didn't work out between mitch mcconnle and harry reid, the top republican and top democrat in the senate, they have shifted between mitch mcconnell and vice president joe biden. that's where all of the action is right now. keeping the speaker of the house john boehner abreast of what's going on. keeping harry reid abreast of what's going on and keeping president obama abreast of what's going on. we heard from senator reid yesterday that they are very far apart. not just talking on the threshold, initially president obama said $250 mi,000. there is talk to bumping that to $400,000. republicans want to know how we pay for it. there are farm subsidies, the doc fix. and spending cuts.

so there is a lot to be resolved here in the next few hours. >> too bad we only found out about this, you know, yesterday or the day before. 517 days they've had to work out the details and now we're talking about them all. brianna, we'll be busy today and may be ringing in the new year together. brianna keilar in washington. a ball dropping in washington, a ball dropping in times square it looks like we'll go off the fiscal cliff. here's what it means to you. your paycheck will shrink. the payroll tax holiday is likely going away, for someone making $50,000 a year, it means $80 out of your paycheck. taxes will rise for 90% of americans by about 2,000 a year for those making between $40,000 and $60,000. making six figures? taxes go up by $13,000 if

congress doesn't act. and the hit that families will take. four tax credits in danger of disappeared. four family tax credits, including earned income tax credit, close to $6,000 families for families making $50,000. american opportunity tax credit, helping lower income families pay for college. these revert back to lower levels, which means higher tax bills for american families. good morning, everyone. >> we're consumed by a couple of stories, but there are a lot of criticism of whether it should be called fiscal cliff. a lot of it has already started. people have pulled back on spending. people are not stupid. if they think they lose $2,000, $3,000, $4,000 next year, they start saving now. we see weakness in holiday shopping. >> criticism you keep hearing,

the media overplaying this or hyperbole, what do you say? >> i think it's just -- >> is it as bad as it sounds? >> this was dine e designed to bad it wouldn't happen. congress designed this time bomb so it would never go off and now they are trying to defuse it. this shows a budget problem that is broken. right here at the tipping point and middle class families will feel it if they don't fix it. >> recession possibly. >> the cbo says 9.1% unemployment rate by the end of the year. that is not a slope. that hurts. that really hurts. >> right when things were starting to go in the right direction. checking on other top stories as well. new poll numbers should give secretary of state hillary clinton a lift. she is receiving treatment for a blood clot. tops the list of 2016 democratic hopefuls. take a look. 85% who lean toward the

democratic party say they would be very or somewhat likely to support her if she seeks the democratic nomination, compared to 66% for joe biden. 56% andrew cuomo, 52% for elizabeth warren. 75% would be very or somewhat likely to support paul ryan in 2016. 59% for new jersey governor chris christie. 58% for marco rubeio. 51% for former florida governor jeb bush. president obama plans to submit gun control legislation to congress in 2013. that will deal with assault weapons specifically, as well as background checks on gun sales. as you might realize, it's spurred on by the school massacre in newtown, connecticut, killed 20 children and 6 adults. murdered his mother and killed himself. speaking yesterday on "meet the press," the president says something has to fundamentally change in this country. that newtown shootings cannot

feel like what he called a routine episode. >> that was the worst day of my presidency, and it's not something that i want to see repeated. >> vice president joe biden is leading a task force that will submit legislative proposals to the president in january. also, happy new year, new zealand. auckland. and the start of 2013 with the fireworks display from sky tower, tallest free standing structure in the southern hemisphere. >> and as auckland rings in the new year, preparation under way in times square. heart of new york city, coming up next. >> and more from washington for you. >> my message to all of washington for the new year is to set partisanship aside, working on behalf of 100% of the voters, fix this mess you have gotten us into, bring a balanced budget and-to-grow the economy for the long term, not the short term.

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alina cho is there already. what's it like around you? >> hey, sanjay, good morning. as a doctor, you should be very happy to hear i did dress warmly today, because are you absolutely right about the weather. it is 30 degrees officially right now outside, but it feels like it's 20 degrees. so the number one piece of advice, if you plan to come to times square to ring in the new year? dress warmly. let's talk about security. it seems like we talk about this every year, but it's mind boggling the amount of security that will be in place. thousands more police officers will be on the streets. there will be sharpshooters on rooftops, manhole covers will be sealed. all mailboxes and trash cans will be removed. radiological scanners, explosives teams, firearms and tactics teams. security you will see, and security that you won't see, and, of course, there will be surveillance cameras all around times square. be advised if you plan to come

here tonight, no large bags, no backpacks, no alcohol allowed inside times square, also if you plan to come here and ring in the new year, get here early. the streets around times square close, starting at about 1:00 p.m. eastern time and with 1 million people expected in times square tonight, you can expect it will be packed, it will be cold, and hopefully it will be safe. >> yeah, i have heard it's supposed to be one of the safest times of the yore to be there, despite all the people. despite anderson and cathy, do you know who else will be there? >> for the sixth year in a row, anderson cooper and cathy griffith will host our new year's eve special. that goes from 10:00 p.m. to midnight. taylor swift will be here. along with train. along with train, carly rae

jepsen and psy, of "gangnam style." and when the ball is pressed for the ball drop, this year he will be joined by the radio city rockets, all 36 of them, that's 72 total legs. >> well said. >> it's cold out there now, but another wild night tonight. we know that for sure. and i think karen mcginnis will join to us talk about the weather. here with anderson cooper and kathy griffin. >> my mother is probably watching this, and all my mother asks me about at cnn, honestly, she asks what it's like to work with christine. i can't believe i get paid for this. do you get sick by standing out in the cold? >> you really don't.

not that you shouldn't dress warmly. you get sick from viruses, you can get them inside or outside. >> it's not the cold. >> mom says you lose 80% from your head, and i don't have particular protection on my head. so that's -- should i wear a hat. that would help? >> a hat would help, ali. >> just for my mom. >> mrs. velshi. >> thanks, mom. >> let's see what tonight's weather looks like. it looks cold. >> it is. not going to be as mild as we saw last year. you might see a flurry or two. temperatures expected to dip down to the 30s. windchi-chill factor will make feel like the 20s. we are a hat. wear a coat and across the central united states into kansas and missouri. even into the panhandle of texas. this is where we see snowfall. kansas along interstate 80, 4 to

6 inches of snowfall. the windchill very significant across northern great plains and right across the united states from illinois into new mexico, snowfall there. some of the new year's eve celebrations may be on the short side, especially in grand forks, north dakota, where the wind-chill factor, sanjay, supposed to be minus 28 degrees tonight. >> karen, thank you so much. i think people will still be standing out in new york city tonight. >> yeah, couldn't pay me enough to go stand out there in the cold. >> no bags and no booze. >> you know what? if this fiscal cliff thing is done, i'm going to sleep. however, if it isn't dealt with, your taxes are going to go up. your grocery bill might go up too. the deal that could affect milk prices, next. and a new year's message from washington from one of our viewers. >> my new year's message to

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welcome back. good morning, everybody. minding your business right now. don't forget the dairy cliff. the price of milk could shoot up to $7 a gallon in the new year. while lawmakers play chicken, they are ignoring some important issues, like the agriculture bill, which keeps the price of milk around a national average of $3.65. that subsidy expires tomorrow. without the extension, the formula used to calculate what

the government pays for dairy reverts back to a statute passed in 1945, and the result is $7 for a gallon of milk. investors getting ready for the final trading day of 2012. gold only a touch higher, half a percent, and in asia, a strong manufacturing report out of china, london, frankfurt down, paris up. u.s. stocks lost 2% last week as investors lost patience with washington. the market lost ground in every session since speaker boehner's plan b failed to come it a vote. ken polcari on how the marks are responding. >> unless they respond with a rabbit out of hat, we will see

the market go down, but the market wants a sentiment, a resolution, it's not getting, and the market will vote with it's feet, what you saw the past week. >> one thing you need to know about your money today, it's okay on the last day of 2012 to look at your 401(k), call it the market rally nobody nosed. the broad stock market index, most of the stocks track this. up 11.5% year-to-date. >> that's an average. over 75 years, that's an average of what the market has done. not bad considering europe and the fiscal cliff, not bad. >> and good enough for the tenth best year on record for the s & p 500. a lot of people say the ben bernanke rally. plugging money into the economy, but also a lot of regular people and hedge fund managers, pull out. so you might have missed it. >> a lot higher -- >> i should check it more often.

docs don't check stuff this often. >> we can help each other, my friend. you keep us healthy, we'll make you rich. second of state is spending new year's eve in the hospital, sadly. because of a blood clot. the latest on her condition, just ahead. and the kardashian clan about to get bigger. kim's big announcement. watch us any time at your desk top or mobile phone, go to cnn.com/tv.

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all right. down to the wire. still no deal on the fiscal cliff. are the democrats and republicans too far apart at this point to reach a deal before midnight? i hope not. >> is the cliff armageddon for the defense department. what these defense cuts would mean for national security. a health scare for hillary clinton. what doctors say happened and an

update on her condition. >> i'm ali velshi. >> and i'm christine romans. >> and i'm dr. sanjay gupta. john and zoraida are both off. millions of americans will countdown to a fiscal cliff. a development that could send the nation back to recession. yesterday, the two parties turned to their respective closers, vice president joe biden and senate minority leader mitch mcconnell to get a back door deal done. the republican is not giving up. >> i'm interested in getting a result here. willing to work with whoever can help. there is no single issue that remains an impossible sticking point. >> all right according to the president, there has always been and still is one big sticking point. raising taxes on the middle class. he is planning his next move if the two sides can't carve out a

compromise. >> pressure on congress to produce if they don't, what i've said is that in the senate we should go ahead and swrus legislation that makes sure middle class taxes stay where they are and an support or down vote. everybody should have the right to vote on that. if republicans don't like it, they can vote no. >> and everybody on the record to what they have to do. the senate won't come into session until 11:00 today. 11:00 eastern. we don't want to wake them up too early on new year's eve. it's going to he about a late night. let's speak with someone on capitol hill. republican michael burgess. a republican from texas. thank you for being up today. a lot of americans think you should be awake and probably shouldn't have too much sleep last night. pretty generally disgusted about what's been going on. give us some hope and reason not

to be entirely, entirely disgusted that in 517 days of knowing this day is coming we're down to the wire. >> you know, if i sound optimistic, i guess the markets respond, so that's a lower you have given me here this morning in this secure location in washington, d.c. good morning to you, all. i hope you have a good new year. this deadline that we're up upon is a little different from some other deadlines, it's not quite the hard break. look, have you a lot of difficulties ahead, we've got the fiscal cliff in january debt limit in february, appropriations resolution in march. i know people are tired of this story, but it's not really going away any time soon. there will be otherity rations that -- reiterations that will play out throughout the first of the year. the fiscal cliff is pieces of

law that were signed into law two years ago for the tax policy, 18 months ago for the sequester. it's well and good to say that congress has been aware, but the president has been aware and the president up until the last 24 years hasn't gotten engaged and to tell you the truth, you don't feel his engagement on capitol hill, not like you do in some other areas where the president has gotten engaged and i served with president george bush, and when he got engaged, you knew there was presidential engagement occurring. >> congressman, the criticism of your party is well documented. let's talk about what's happening right now. what would you support? you have this fight over raising taxes on the riches americans. letting the bush era tax cuts expire for the richest americans. would you support as some are talking on the hill, the higher taxes for people who make

450,000 a year or more? the very richest earners in america and letting the middle class keep their tax cuts? if that came out of senate, would you support it? >> if that was all involved, no, the answer is, no, i probably wouldn't. >> that looks like the house wanting to protect the very richest americans and raise revenue for everyone else. >> the simplest solution has been available since august. the house passed a one-year extension of current tax policy. the cost of that is not that much greater than some of the other things that has been proposed. do that, let's take the tyime ad get the fundamental tax reform that everyone knows we need. we're tinkering around the edges and why do we want to punish success for crying out loud. you guys in new york are successful. much more successful than a lot of us are in texas. we don't want to punish you for your success, we'd like to reward you for your success.

>> a somewhat cynical plan put forward by john boehner. plan b. i don't know if this negotiation with the president will work out, 50 republicans couldn't get on side with that. on side with the idea that people who earn more than $1 million a year will see their tax on the amount they earn above $1 million a year, go up by 4.6 percentage points. who are the people in this country who will go to the wall and make taxes go up for everybody to protect the people who earn more than one million a year see their tax increases above a million a year by 4.6%? i don't think you can put this on democrats, sir. these are hard lifeline conservatives who didn't even let your leader take that to the floor for a vote. >> well, he was the one that withdrew it from the floor. >> they wouldn't vote for it. >> the problem isn't the tax policy. it's spending activity. >> the problem is revenue.

>> if we don't fix the spending problem, we are in deep trouble. >> u.s. a trillion dollars of a $4 trillion problem we're trying to solve. $1 trillion. >> tax on the top 2% is $80 billion for the first year. we spent that in the first ten days of october. >> that's for this year. everything we're talking about is over ten years. that's how the conversation goes. $80 billion for this year, basically over a billion. we can't change the math to make it convenient and make it sound like you don't get money from raising taxes on the rich. you absolutely do. can you concede that point? you aren't going to concede that point? >> we can fiddle with the tax code all we want. we haven't solved the problem. we were sent here to solve the problem. the president maintains he won an election on his -- on his grounds, and i maintain i won an election on mine. i was not sent here to raise taxes on anyone. top 2%, bottom 2%, any 2%.

the fact of the matter is that the federal government spends too much. you can't tell me that the dime out of every dollar that's spent -- >> i'm not telling you that, you're right. would you agree to a deal that at some point involves the raising of taxes on somebody? >> i won't foreclose any possibility. >> got it. >> but the fact of the matter remains that we've got a lot of things that should be included in that. >> sure. >> because to this point. i haven't seen evidence of that, and hearing the president talk on another network yesterday, you know, it didn't sound as if he had that fundamental understanding. look, all tax bills have to originate in the house. the president can't propose legislation about taxes. he knows that. he's a constitutional scholar. i'm just a simple country doctor and i get that point. >> you're not a simple country doctor, but thank you for that point. >> thank you. >> we appreciate your time this morning. >> thank you. less than 18 hours from a deadline that absolutely never needed to be here.

here are a few of the things that will happen if the united states doesn't meet that deadline. without a deal, the bush tax cuts go away, rates return to pre2001 levels, similarly, the pay tax holiday we've enjoyed since 2011 goes away, the withholding rate returns to 6.2% for all wages, all wage earners up to 113,700 per year. long-term unemployed in for an unhappy new year. federal benefits run out when the clock strikes 12:00, and there has been the spending cuts that we've just been talking about. they will start taking effect tomorrow in all 1$110 billion i automatic cuts to domestic and military spending start to kick in. the congressional budget office says that will cause the economy to shrink in the first quarter of the year, and the economy grew at a rate of 3.1% in the third quarter of 2012. probably less than that during

this current quarter, nobody knows exactly what is coming next and that's affecting businesses and consumers in how they spend. >> half a trillion in budget cuts over the next ten years. a gloom and doom scenario that the pentagon says. but is it? chris lawrence has a closer look. >> reporter: to hear the pentagon tell it -- >> sequestration, therefore if it were allowed to happen, will introduce senseless chaos. >> the fiscal cliff -- >> sequestration will have a chaotic effect on the force. >> reporter: is akin to armaggedon. >> i worry about being blindsided by a huge cut because they don't have the strength or courage or guts to do what they have to do. >> happy holidays. >> reporter: the cliff would cut $500 billion in defense spending, but spread out over the next ten years. would these cuts really be that bad? >> absolutely not.

>> reporter: analyst ben freeman argues the pentagon can survive on a smaller budget. >> it will drop a little bit. but not catastrophic, doomsday, any sort of hyperbole. >> reporter: perhaps the navy would have to buy less expensive, less advanced fighter jets instead of the new f-35. or the pentagon would have to cut the number of soldiers and marines back to the numbers before 9/11. >> sequestration would risk hollowing out our force. >> reporter: pentagon officials say going over the cliff would actually leave them $1 trillion in the hole, it comes on top of cuts they have already budgeted for. >> we've put in place $487 billion in savings over the next ten years. >> reporter: are these cuts the same sort of budget cuts that you and i think of when we think of cutting our budget? >> i call them phantom cuts. it's not a real savings.

>> reporter: freeman says the pentagon was counting money it was projecting to spend as savings which isn't the same as simply spending less. >> this is the way d.c. does math. it's unfortunately we can't do our taxes that way, but it's the d.c. does math. >> reporter: everyone from the secretary on down is on autopilot to defend their budgetet. he needs people to go in and challenge their cost, he argued it's better done over time and not forced on them by the fiscal cliff. chris lawrence, cnn, the pentagon. >> it's a usual suspect for overdoses, the serious and growing danger of prescription painkiller abuse. that next. stay with us. progressive custo. i plugged in snapshot, and 30 days later, i was saving big on car insurance. with snapshot, i knew what i could save before i switched to progressive. the better i drive, the more i save.

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about every 19 minutes, someone dies of an accidental prescription drug overdose. drugs that might be in your medicine cabinet right now kill more often than overdoses of heroin, crack and methamphetamine combined.

some call this the worst man made epidemic. it may surprise you how few people, including doctors, know this. i did this report and saw that epidemic first hand in washington state. to see the problem first hand, i rode along with lieutenant craig ament. when he takes an overdose call, the usual suspect is a painkiller. what do you see in seattle? >> if you pull a group of people together from this community, someone in that group will have had a friend, loved one, who has had difficulty with a prescription drug or potentially died from that. >> reporter: his unit responds to 45 calls a month for overdoses of these types of medications. it can be difficult to tell if it's painkiller or heroin, because they come from the same

ingredient and do the same sort of thing to your body. >> aside from needle tracks in the arms, someone who has had an overdose of pain medication like that, they can look very much the same. >> very much. they can be unconscious from medication that they think is relatively safe for them because of instead of getting on the street they get it from a pharmacist. possible drug overdose. these people are suffering from chronic pain. they know that a little bit of pain medication helps, so maybe a lot would help a lot more. >> reporter: when we arrive, another medic is on the scene. >> somewhere in that parking garage there is a call about someone having a drug overdose. >> reporter: the overdose victim came to and walked away. but while we were there, another call. ith been just a few minutes.

i decide to ride along with lieutenant john fisk, headed to the scene. >> sounds like decreased level of consciousness and some respiratory compromise. sounds like a narcotic overdose. sanjay there, are solutions to this? something you tell patients to deter them from being irresponsible with these medications? how many people get hooked on them without doing anything irresponsible? >> as a doctor, we need to be much more frank. we give the prescription out, don't take this with alcohol or other medicine, but the message is you could die if you do this. someone dies every 19 minutes. not people who are abusing illegal drugs. this is prescription drugs. this is a good year to remind you of your medicine cabinets. one of the most common things. people leave them in their medicine cabinet and may take it to sleep one night, three people an hour die in this way.

>> you used to lock your liquor cabinet. as a parent, you have to lock the medicine cabinet. powerful things in there. you don't want your kids getting a hold of . >> do you get addicted just by taking it? >> what happens, the potency starts to wear down, and you get that sort of dependence in the brain as well. need to take more. >> someone told me for oxycontin you shouldn't take it for more than five or six days. >> it doesn't work after a period of time. it doesn't give you pain relief anymore. you might get a euphoric high. but it could cut down on your ability to breathe on your own. a bedroom sitting empty this morning after russia bans american families from adopting russian kids. we'll talk to one couple who was on the verge of bringing this little girl home. their daughter home, and then this law was passed. next.

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many american families are in a painful limbo this morning because of a new russian law that goes into effect tomorrow. a russian law banning u.s.

adopti adoptions. for the past 13 months, kendra and jason skagz are in the process of adopting a 5-year-old girl with special needs, paulina. a russian judge granted the adoption petition on christmas eve. and it requires a 30-day waiting period. they already consider her a part of the family. kendra scaggs joins us live from los angeles. tell me, first of all, when you heard that the russian president had -- the country had banned adoptions by american families, what went through your mind? >> a lot of fear. very scary not knowing what will happen next. we thought the children that cleared the court will be able to come home and then we found out it was just the six whose waiting period was over in

december. it's very unclear since our waiting period isn't over until the end of january if we will be able to bring her home or not. >> what are you hearing about what you should do? i know privately other families say they are kind of crossing their fingers, trying to keep a lo profile and hoping something changes in the bureaucracy so they can get adoptions under way through the process. what are officials here telling you? >> really, we haven't heard anything, our adoption agency told us to register with the department of state. we've done through through e-mail. response through e-mail says we're registered and they'll let us know anything we can mianing is that the six families whose waiting periods ends have been notified they will be able to bring their child home. i believe three of them already have, and three of them will go back after the russian holiday to pick their children up. as for the 46 of us, we're not being told anything at this time. >> we know there are about 1,000

russian children adopted to the united states last year. the third largest country for american adoptions. you have to go to the country, once, if not twice i think in some cases, meet with official there, go to the orphanage, you really have to prove that you are going to be -- you have to prove this to the russian authorities. you were just recent there will. did anyone tell you that they thought there was going to be a problem? >> yes. we actually have to go three times. the first time to receive our referral and spend some visits with the child. we visited with her five times in september, and signed official papers saying we want to go forward with the adoption and tell them what name we're going to give her. at that time we come home and wait for a court date, and we went back for our court date in december, had five more visits with her, according to russian law, you have to have ten visits before court. we went to court on december

24th, and on that date, we were told even if we got approved, the law could keep us from coming back if it were passed. >> she has special needs. has spina bifida, and you your family have prepared a room for her, you are ready for the medical challenges. ready for all of the challenges. this is your little girl. you think because she has special needs, you might have a better chance? >> i hope so. there has been a proposed amendment to the legislation, saying it would exyou clued the ban for disabled children, that's one of the hopes we had, we'll be able to bring her home it has to go through three votes in the lower par la men, three votes of the upper parliament and then signed by president putin. >> best of luck to you. people who are being hurt are little children in an orphanage who want to be reunited with

people like you who want to help them and take care of you. kendra, thank you very much. best of luck to you. >> thank you. a story we've been following all morning. secretary of state hillary clinton in the hospital for a blood cot. a live report at the top of the hour. and when the clock strikes at midnight, and the ball drops in new york city, the ball also drops in washington, d.c. we'll speak with grover norquist about the likelily hood of a deal in washington. welcome to chevy's year-end event.

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